not quite a 400 but a cb350S

[lizard821000]

ah na pete, not knocking it, i bought it cos i liked it but unfortunatly it doesnt really have the lines /frame to do the cafe racer convertion i wanted. so gunna tidy it up and sell on. yeah i like the black ones over the white too tbh.

[lizard821000]

a quick question if anyone knows................can a bike with more modern ""say"" 5-6 spoke rims but with drum brakes, be swopped over for rims with spokes!? looking for this cafe racer project bike but im turning alot away because im unsure if the convertion is easy or even doable!? to fit spoke wheels to a bike , is the drum a part of the hub on the old drum brakes!? im a little confused, if anyone know any helpful info be muched appriciated.

so say somin like these


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1984-HONDA-CB-400 ... 25657bd5b4


to these.....

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1976-Honda-CB-250 ... 2c5ddb232c


im sure you all know what im on about , just my explination is a little messy lol

[PB1]

Yes, the drum is part of the hub, so you'd need to swap the whole wheel. Only the backplate, that holds and operates the drum brake shoes, does not rotate. Conversion is pretty straightforward but is not just a quick swap. Whereas disk brake wheels only need the caliper fixed to the swingarm/forks, when you convert to wired drum brake wheels you will need to provide some method of stopping the drum brake backplates from rotating when you apply the brakes. On the front this will need a short stay-bar to the fork leg on the brake side, and the same on the rear (but quite a bit longer) fixed to the swingarm close the the pivot pin. Have a close look on that early '70s CB250 and you'll see what is needed. If your bike already has drum brakes you should be able to re-use these, depending upon what bike the new wheels have come off.

Lever/pedal/cable/operating rod etc may need changing to suit - depends again upon what the donor is And you need to check that the total width of the wheel's hub at the spindle is not too wide to fit in the forks/swing-arm. If it's too narrow you can have some spacers turned up to make it fit. All easily do-able.

[lizard821000]

cheers PB1, lots of info there for me, sounds not too bad but a little bit of effort to do the swop. basically i keep seeing later models of say the cb250 with the more modern 5 spoke wheels, still have the rear drum though . and then i see the early models with the 18 spoke wheels(the chrome bar ones) and wonder if a straight swop could be done between the 2 . coz iv seen loads of later type CBs around but all with the shit 5-6 spoke wheels. and id want old school 18 spoke ones for my racer convertion. obviously it would be easier if i found a CB already with the wheels i wanted, im unsure also how rare the multy spoke wheels are to buy and cost....... would you say as long as the bike was already using a rear drum brake the swop would be considerd alot easier, as long as messurment lined up etc. to swop over i mean. id imagin id have to source the same manifacture of wheel for it too fit the drum hub.

[PB1]

Taking the rear first - yes, if the donor bike has a drum brake then it's going to be much easier, as the stay bar will already be there and also the brake operating rod will be there. You might have to modify them a bit, but if you are going true Cafe and puting rear-sets on you'll have to shorten the brake operating rod anyway. If using a similar sized donor wheel it's likely the distance between the swing arm won't be far out for your new wheel, and either trimming the size of the existing wheel spindle spacers, or making new ones/adding more spacers should sort it.

The front could be trickier. If the donor front has a drum brake, then it's either going to have a short stay bar, which is bolted to a cast-in stud on the alloy backplate, or a slotted boss. If it's a short stay bar, all you need to do it create a bracket on your lower fork leg to bolt it to, or maybe use one of the redundant caliper fixing points with a suitable spacer? If it's a slotted boss, you need to create a U section that can be fitted to the lower fork leg for the boss to slide into. On some of these bikes it's the other way round and there is a boss on the brake backplate and the U shaped slot cast into the leg. Either way, you've either got to replicate it, or you might be able to make a short stay that works and is safe. A donor front with disc brakes, that you wanted to keep and not change to drum, is very difficult to convert to spokes unless you find a suitable CB200 front wheel or something from about 1978 ish.

You really need to have a close look at a 1973 CB250, for example, or anything about that age and type with drums and spokes, and all will become clear.

Multi-spoked wheels are still around but more difficult to get in nice condition. Most 35 year old ones will need a new chrome rim and new stainless spokes - any bike restorers will get it done for you but at a price. It's worth phoning round before you decide to go chrome wires.

[lizard821000]

What a gent, chers for the info lad. Well tbh I'd most likely leave the front as a caliper brake system, just for the better braking but least then the swop would be easier , maybe just some soacers etc like you said. It also sounds like its worth my while waiting for a bike to come around already with the multiy spoke wheels just coz of the rareaty of them and cost to re-vamp the originals anyways. So youv basically answerd my concernse mate. :) thanks bud

[lizard821000]

ok , im really struggling now tbh, does anyone know of any big based forums i might be able to pick up an exhuast system for my cb350sg?? iv left a few spars messages on variouse forums to parts needed but with no results seems a little difficult to find one, i now know why the seller sold lol the bikes great though, its just a new front wireing loom needed to tidy up the bodgeary that a priviouse owner has done and the exhuast....... im not really interested in spending 200 odd quid on a new stainless motard one that wont see me my money back on re-sale.


a little help please guys if you know of websites to post or of anywhere else i could look/ask.

many thanks

[lizard821000]

exhaust system turned up this afternoon, so couldnt resist whacking it on, i thought it was an original when i purchased it on-line lol its a motad system, for the dollor its like new :) 80 quid and happy. fking hard work finding any second hand parts for this bike! a few pics.....









i will stick an MOT on her, few wireing problems need sorting first too but all small jobs. hope to get 500-600 for her. aparently the white ones are even rarer than the black.

[lizard821000]

right, the simple electrical problems have turned out not to be simple lol fk!

my oil pressure light on my dash stays on when i turn ignition on, is this enough to justify the engine not starting?? my startor motor will not tunr either!? are these 2 things connected? my manual has a walk through guide on how to check the oil pressure but i have to buy a fking oil pressure gauge! doh! but is low oil pressure likely to make my engine not turn over?? im thinking no but please, if a mechanic can shed some light?

i think i also have a loose wire around my ignition wires too, the solinod/starter relay will tick but i have to giggle around with the wires under and around my ignition. but the startor motor still wont turn over? iv also tryed and bridged the -/+ terminals on the relay to see if it was at fualt but it sparks but still not a wiff of life through my startor motor!? where should i be looking next here? i hate electrical problems lol any help please.

[lizard821000]

so still having fking trouble finding the fualt.all connections around the starter relay and battery are good . the one around the startor motor has been painted!? lol so ill clean that one up and re-try. iv worked out now that the oil pressure light will go out after the motors been on a while now

the relay ticks like mad with a press of the button, just wont turn the startor motor over. also if i by-pass the relay all together with some pliars it still wont make the startor turn....

bought myself a multimeter,cleaned all contacts and checked the continuity of everything running up toward the startor and its all fine,but iv had the startormotor off and it spins freely by hand, so it must be the eletrical contacts inside the motor itself! fker. im struggling to get my head around the ohm meter and where to read from though, im getting 11.9 from the battery itself, and the same from the positive to the earths around the bike, but if held onto the 2 conectors of the starter relay/solinod and press the button im not getting anything? if i check the continuity though of the same terminals ( the relay) and hit the starter i get the buzz from the multimeter....so it does have continuity, have i done this right? also if i conect the + of the reader to the battery and the - to the startor motor wire conection on the outside of its housing and press the button im getting the same multimeter buzz, showing its getting power, but the motor cog doesnt spin even though it dosnt apper to be jammed!? wtf. is my battery fubar or do you think its the contacts inside the motor its self(that i cant fking get too coz the 2 retaining philp heads are rounded to fk and wont go no where!)

so, thats a reading of 12.2 from the batt in OFF. 11.9 when ON. and 10.2 when i hit the button


iv just found this link too, it looks like my battery is fubar....2nd opinion, does this chart talk sence?? before i go and buy a new battery that is :)

http://www.totalmoto...nce/battery.htm